It's not known if Larry Bowa, the former Dodgers third base coach, pulled his name from consideration to be the Mets' bench coach or if the team lost interest in the ex-Phillies manager.

ST. LOUIS - Larry Bowa, whose name was initially raised by Mets insiders as a potential replacement for Ken Oberkfell as Terry Collins' bench coach, is not currently a candidate, according to two people familiar with the team's thinking. One source said that Bowa was "not on the list" at the moment.

It is unclear if Bowa said he was not interested, or if the Mets simply decided to consider other candidates. He was a member of Collins' coaching staff with Anaheim from 1997-1999, and the Mets manager maintains a high opinion of him.

Former Washington manager Jim Riggleman, who played with Collins in the minors nearly 40years ago, was scheduled to interview Wednesday, and former A's skipper Bob Geren will also meet with the Mets about the job this week.

The interview process comes after a shakeup in the staff that was precipitated by third base coach Chip Hale leaving to become bench coach for the A's. Triple-A manager Tim Teufel was promoted to replace Hale.

Collins, believing he would miss Hale's high-energy style and knowledge of the league (Oberkfell has worked almost exclusively in the minors in recent years), decided to seek a bench coach with recent big-league coaching or managerial experience.